Ceret saturday market-best in area

Sometimes we have to accept that the French do it better, not bigger or louder, just with more style. Such is the case of the saturday morning market in the streets of Ceret, which is just across the border some 45 mins from Girona.

 

The stalls are more varied, the products look nicer, even when most of the fruit on sale is Spanish. You can find lots of interesting things for presents like candles and soap, then there is the selection of organic bread, fruit and vegetables as well as wines, honey, cheese, which is also never seen, or at least not promoted as such in Spain.

Add in the fact that Ceret is a charming village with some interesting old squares, narrow lanes and plenty of terraces to sit outside and eat and drink and the whole experience feels somehow more satisfying.

Winter is not the best time to visit as there are fewer stalls, and thus selection, but it is also less crowded and if you plan well, after indulging in lunch in one of the many tempting restaurants, the local rugby team may be playing which is a real treat.

Vive la France, and having it so close by!

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Posted via email from Discover Girona

Ceret saturday market-best in area

Sometimes we have to accept that the French do it better, not bigger or louder, just with more style. Such is the case of the saturday morning market in the streets of Ceret, which is just across the border some 45 mins from Girona.

 

The stalls are more varied, the products look nicer, even when most of the fruit on sale is Spanish. You can find lots of interesting things for presents like candles and soap, then there is the selection of organic bread, fruit and vegetables as well as wines, honey, cheese, which is also never seen, or at least not promoted as such in Spain.

Add in the fact that Ceret is a charming village with some interesting old squares, narrow lanes and plenty of terraces to sit outside and eat and drink and the whole experience feels somehow more satisfying.

Winter is not the best time to visit as there are fewer stalls, and thus selection, but it is also less crowded and if you plan well, after indulging in lunch in one of the many tempting restaurants, the local rugby team may be playing which is a real treat.

Vive la France, and having it so close by!

See the full gallery on posterous

 

Posted via email from gironaJ

Old Vic-wonderful architecture

Vic is a town some 65 kms from Girona. Now that the road connecting the two is being upgraded it only takes 40 mins and is well worth the visit.

The town is dominated by a large square, in the style of the Plaza Mayor of Madrid and Salamanca, Vic's is surrounded with impressive buildings dating back to when wealthy merchants built grand houses on the back of agricultural wealth created in the surrounding fertile valley.

Vic is famous for its pork products, especially the traditionally cured sausages. This is still an important sector and large employer locally.

The Old Town of Vic is a great place to wander around.  Make sure you look up since many of the terraces, tiles under the roofs, and other architectural gems aren't visible at eye level. 

After walking around, go back to the Plaza Mayor.  Be sure to pick a table in the sunny part of the square to sit down, have a drink, and watch the locals talk, eat, and enjoy themselves in this beautiful spot.

See the full gallery on posterous

Posted via email from Discover Girona

Old Vic- wonderful architecture

Vic is a town some 65 kms from Girona and now that the road connecting the two is being upgraded it only takes 40 mins and is well worth the visit.

Dominated by a large square, in the style of the Plaza Mayor of Madrid and Salamanca, Vics is surrounded with impressive buildings dating back to when wealthy merchants built grand houses on the back of agricultural wealth created in the surrounding fertile valley.

Famous for its pork products, especially the traditionally cured suasages, it is still an important sector and large employer locally.

The Old Town of Vic is a great place to wander around, just make sure you look up as many of the terraces, tiles under the roofs and other architectural gems need a well trained eye to spot. 

After all the walking be sure to pick a table in the sunny part of the square to sit and have a drink and watch the locals talk, eat, and enjoy themselves in this beautiful spot.

See and download the full gallery on posterous

Posted via email from gironaJ

Romanesque gems from the Pla de l'Estany

Winter weather here can be perfect with cold nights turning into warm clear days which is what we took advantage of today with a bike ride around some of the small villages between Banyoles and Figueres.

The Romanesque period (Xth to XIIth Century) left some wonderful examples in the churches of this area and these tiny towns are frequently a handful of houses gathered around the church and little else, normally on a hilltop to be able to spot any roving brigands and where the church bells fulfilled an important warning system.

At one stage we cycled along the pilgrim route more famous now as the Camino de Santiago which the Catalans are marking as the route which goes from the French border to the Monastery of Montserrat and across to Lleida before joining the better known part in Navarra and then on finally  to Santiago de Compostela some 800 km's away. On the front of Santa Maria de Vilamari church is a statue from 1787 which clearly shows the pilgrim surrounded by the symbolic scallop shell and holding his walking staff and water gourd.

These old churches have a lot of charm and after all these centuries have blended into the scenery as much as the rolling countryside, fields planted with winter wheat and the oak tree forests.

See and download the full gallery on posterous

Posted via email from gironaJ

High fives for Catalonia!

The last few days have been full of tension here in Catalonia as long awaited events have been resolved, one via the ballot box and the other on the sports field. 

The first important event were the elections for the Generalitat, the autonomous government of Catalonia, which saw a noticeable swing to the right which may well be reflected more generally in Spain over the next 6 months as other regions hold their own elections. This change was accompanied by a high turnout (60%) and emphasized peoples desire for change after 7 years of a Socialist coalition and a confused "head in the sand" approach to the general crisis which has swept Catalonia as well as the rest of Spain.

The second event was not political per se, but sporting, the football (soccer) league game between Barcelona and Madrid held at the Camp Nou stadium in Barcelona with over 90,000 fervent spectators cheering their respective teams. This particular game is far more than a football game, having been elevated to a status akin to a direct battle between the Catalan people and their oppressors, the central government as represented by the Madrid team who tax and control them excessively, so the general feeling goes. In actual fact the result was an absolute domination by Barcelona with a convincing 5-0 annihilation, and a show of skills which were spine tingling to watch and led to much celebration here for hours afterwards. 

My feeling is that these two events could spark a feeling of renewed self confidence within Catalonia which might just help get them through the economic problems they have been engulfed in over the last few years, certainly they surprised everyone with the results of these two events, not least themselves!

See and download the full gallery on posterous

Posted via email from gironaJ

High fives for Catalonia!

The last few days have been full of tension here in Catalonia as long awaited events have been resolved, one via the ballot box and the other on the sports field. 

The first important event were the elections for the Generalitat, the autonomous government of Catalonia, which saw a noticeable swing to the right which may well be reflected more generally in Spain over the next 6 months as other regions hold their own elections. This change was accompanied by a high turnout (60%) and emphasized peoples desire for change after 7 years of a Socialist coalition and a confused "head in the sand" approach to the general crisis which has swept Catalonia as well as the rest of Spain.

The second event was not political per se, but sporting, the football (soccer) league game between Barcelona and Madrid held at the Camp Nou stadium in Barcelona with over 90,000 fervent spectators cheering their respective teams. This particular game is far more than a football game, having been elevated to a status akin to a direct battle between the Catalan people and their oppressors, the central government as represented by the Madrid team who tax and control them excessively, so the general feeling goes. In actual fact the result was an absolute domination by Barcelona with a convincing 5-0 annihilation, and a show of skills which were spine tingling to watch and led to much celebration here for hours afterwards. 

My feeling is that these two events could spark a feeling of renewed self confidence within Catalonia which might just help get them through the economic problems they have been engulfed in over the last few years, certainly they surprised everyone with the results of these two events, not least themselves!

See the full gallery on posterous

Posted via email from Discover Girona

Romanyà de la Selva-a very special place

Romanyà is a tiny village perched at 400m with sweeping views over the valley of Llagostera all the way to the Costa Brava in the distance is dominated by several large medieval houses around a Xth century church.

This is worth stopping to look at if you have time but from here is where things get interesting if you follow the signs to the menhir which is a large granite stone standing in a pine forest some 5 mins walk from Romanyà. Keep going along the marked path, past the village cemetery and you enter an old cork oak forest full of gnarled trees and filtered light. Soon you approach a small hill with what looks like some rocks on it and as you get closer it starts to take shape. This is the Dolmen of "La Cova d'en Daina" a 2,000 BC megalithic burial chamber surrounded by a cromlach of smaller stones forming an 11m circle around it.

The size and location under some huge cork oaks and pine trees was breathtaking. It is a place to just sit and wonder about, imparting a feeling of tranquility, peace and reflexion. It reminded me of Stonehenge before people were excluded from approaching the stones and the setting is Mediterranean instead of bleak England which makes it even better!

See the full gallery on posterous

Posted via email from Discover Girona

Romanyà de la Selva-a very special place

Romanyà is a tiny village perched at 400m with sweeping views over the valley of Llagostera all the way to the Costa Brava in the distance is dominated by several large medieval houses around a Xth century church.

This is worth stopping to look at if you have time but from here is where things get interesting if you follow the signs to the menhir which is a large granite stone standing in a pine forest some 5 mins walk from Romanyà. Keep going along the marked path, past the village cemetery and you enter an old cork oak forest full of gnarled trees and filtered light. Soon you approach a small hill with what looks like some rocks on it and as you get closer it starts to take shape. This is the Dolmen of "La Cova d'en Daina" a 2,000 BC megalithic burial chamber surrounded by a cromlach of smaller stones forming an 11m circle around it.

The size and location under some huge cork oaks and pine trees was breathtaking. It is a place to just sit and wonder about, imparting a feeling of tranquility, peace and reflexion. It reminded me of Stonehenge before people were excluded from approaching the stones and the setting is Mediterranean instead of bleak England which makes it even better!

See and download the full gallery on posterous

Posted via email from gironaJ